Saturday, June 09, 2012

Last month, [Will] Startup¹ and his Sugar Land teammates became the first relievers in almost two decades to ride to the mound in a bullpen cart when the [Sugar Land] Skeeters of the independent Atlantic League started using one. It isn’t just the biggest development for bullpen cart fans since Tom Berenger drove one in pursuit of Rene Russo in “Major League,” it’s also the best news for the U.S. automotive industry since the turnaround…

The last such motorized shuttle in the majors is believed to be the Brewers’ Harley Davidson motorcycle and sidecar in 1995… Since this is 2012, the Skeeters’ cart is suitably eco-friendly—it runs on a battery—and has air-conditioning (a ‘must’ for a team located just outside Houston), leather seats, a backup camera, a sound system and a cup holder… The Skeeters have something else in mind, though: They plan to add a bubble machine to the cart so it will leave a trail of bubbles floating behind it…

several Japanese teams still use a bullpen cart. I just hope the bullpen cart returns to the majors soon as well, because they might finally lead to the end of the one-inning closer.

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Why on earth are the Sugar Land Skeeters in the Atlantic League, and not the American Association? The Atlantic League has been around for 15 years and has never had a team closer to Texas than Waldorf, Maryland. This has to be a sign of some sort of desperation.

Why on earth are the Sugar Land Skeeters in the Atlantic League, and not the American Association? The Atlantic League has been around for 15 years and has never had a team closer to Texas than Waldorf, Maryland. This has to be a sign of some sort of desperation.

I think it's actually the opposite, the Atlantic League wants to expand west.

Indy ball has serious problems, but I view this as an attempt by the relatively strong Atlantic League to grab some sweet Texas markets.

Will Startup was an interesting relief prospect once upon a time - posted a 2.19 ERA in AAA at age 22 (and had pretty good numbers prior to that) and was traded as part of a package for Royce Ring. Ring didn't work out - neither did Startup who struggled, got hurt, and never got back to where he was.

1982: The Mariners introduce a nautically themed bullpen conveyance called the Tugboat. It gets off to a rocky start on Opening Day when pitcher Bill Caudill steals the keys during pregame festivities, leaving the Tugboat stranded on the left-field line and delaying the start of the game.

I still can't believe Will Startup never made the majors. He breezed through the minors with the Braves, looking like a solid future lefty reliever, then got dumped off to the Padres and blew out his arm. Go Dawgs!

Bullpen cars were great for merchandising. I hope they still sell the toy cars even though there are no bullpen cars anymore. When I was a kid I happily blew my allowance on the toy bullpen car. That thing must still be in Mom's basement somewhere.